Management of podcasts

ABSTRACT

Improved techniques that facilitate the use of podcasts are disclosed. The improved techniques can pertain to publishing, hosting, accessing, subscribing, managing, organizing, searching, browsing, transferring, and/or playing podcasts. According to one aspect, tags are embedded into syndication feeds (e.g., RSS feeds) that may be made available for distribution by an online media store to facilitate the management of podcasts. Such tags can include a block tag that may be embedded into a syndication feed to indicate whether the feed is to be blocked from being included in the online media store. According to another aspect, management of podcasts may be facilitated by other mechanisms. In accordance with one embodiment, a user may challenge the ownership of a podcast to block or remove a podcast from the online media store. In accordance with another embodiment, images may be stored to allow efficient retrieval of the corresponding episode(s) of a podcast.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application No.60/805,449, entitled “MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION OF PODCASTS”, filed onJun. 21, 2006, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein.

This application is related to: (i) U.S. patent application Ser. No.11/476,414, filed on Jun. 27, 2006 and entitled “PODCAST ORGANIZATIONAND USAGE AT A COMPUTING DEVICE”, which is hereby incorporated byreference herein; and (ii) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/476,415,filed on Jun. 27, 2006 and entitled “BROWSING AND SEARCHING OFPODCASTS”, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein.

This application is also related to: (i) U.S. patent application Ser.No. 11/166,332, filed on Jun. 25, 2005 and entitled “ACQUISITION,MANAGEMENT AND SYNCHRONIZATION OF PODCASTS”, which is herebyincorporated by reference herein; (ii) U.S. patent application Ser. No.11/166,333, and entitled “UTILIZATION OF PODCASTS ON PORTABLE MEDIADEVICES”, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference; (iii) U.S.patent application Ser. No. 11/166,331, and entitled “TECHNIQUES ANDSYSTEMS FOR SUPPORTING PODCASTING”, which is hereby incorporated byreference herein; (iv) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/114,914,filed Apr. 25, 2005, and entitled “PUBLISHING, BROWSING, RATING ANDPURCHASING OF GROUPS OF MEDIA ITEMS”, which is hereby incorporatedherein by reference; (v) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/115,090,filed Apr. 25, 2005, and entitled “PUBLISHING, BROWSING AND PURCHASINGOF GROUPS OF MEDIA ITEMS”, which is hereby incorporated herein byreference; (vi) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/832,984, filed Apr.26, 2004, and entitled “GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE FOR BROWSING, SEARCHINGAND PRESENTING MEDIA ITEMS”; (vii) U.S. patent application Ser. No.11/138,004, filed May 25, 2005, and entitled “ON-LINE PURCHASE OFDIGITAL MEDIA BUNDLES”; (viii) U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/832,812, filed Apr. 26, 2004, and entitled “METHOD AND SYSTEM FORSECURE NETWORK-BASED DISTRIBUTION OF CONTENT”; (ix) U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 10/833,267, filed Apr. 26, 2004, and entitled“METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR NETWORK-BASED PURCHASE AND DISTRIBUTION OFMEDIA”; and (x) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/221,351, filed Sep.5, 2005, and entitled “PARENTAL CONTROL GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE,” whichis hereby incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to podcasts and, more particularly, toacquiring, managing, and organizing podcasts.

2. Description of the Related Art

A media player stores media assets, such as audio tracks, that can beplayed or displayed on the media player. One example of a portable mediaplayer is the iPod® media player, which is available from AppleComputer, Inc. of Cupertino, Calif. Often, a media player acquires itsmedia assets from a host computer that serves to enable a user to managemedia assets. In managing media assets, a user can create playlists foraudio tracks. These playlists can be created at the host computer. Mediaassets within the playlists can then be copied to the media player. Asan example, the host computer can execute a media management applicationto create and manage media assets. One example of a media managementapplication is iTunes® produced by Apple Computer, Inc.

Podcasts are typically used to share content from websites. Podcasts aretypically associated with Really Simple Syndication (RSS) feeds, whichuse a lightweight XML format. A podcast can be organized into episodesmuch like a radio or television program. An interested person cansubscribe to receive podcast episodes that are subsequently published.This is achieved by the interested person using their computer to accessa podcast website that hosts the RSS feed. The interested person canthen subscribe to the RSS feed such that their computer occasionallyre-visits the podcast website to check for any new podcast episodes.Typically, if a new podcast episode is available, it is downloaded tothe computer. Thereafter, the interested user can play the podcastepisode at their computer in the same manner as other audio files (e.g.,MP3 files). A utility program can be used to download the audio files toa portable media player (e.g., MP3 player). One example of such aconventional utility program is “iPodder,” which is a small program thatruns on one's computer to download audio files to one's portable mediaplayer.

Unfortunately, podcasts are conventionally not easily managed. Podcastsoften dynamically change as new episodes are released. Management ofsuch dynamic media assets is complicated. Additionally, to the extentthat a host computer desires to support a portable media player, thehost computer needs to manage the transfer of podcast data to theportable media player. In addition, due to the increase in the number ofpodcasts that are available, it has become more difficult to manage andorganize the podcasts.

Thus, there is a need for techniques to manage and organize podcasts oncomputers.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention pertains to improved techniques that facilitate the use ofpodcasts. The improved techniques can pertain to creating, publishing,hosting, accessing, subscribing, organizing, managing, transferring,searching, browsing, and/or playing podcasts.

The invention can be implemented in numerous ways, including as amethod, system, device, apparatus (including graphical user interface),or computer readable medium. Several embodiments of the invention arediscussed below.

According to one aspect, one or more tags are embedded into syndicationfeeds (e.g., RSS feeds) that support the syndication of podcasts thatmay be made available for distribution by an online media store. Inaccordance with one embodiment, the tags are embedded in the podcastmetadata content of the syndication feed rather than the podcast mediacontent (e.g., media file).

According to another aspect, upon receiving a syndication feed, thepodcast metadata content of the feed is parsed to identify the embeddedtag(s) and corresponding value(s). In addition, the podcast mediacontent that corresponds to the tag(s) is identified. Informationassociated with the parsed metadata content (e.g., tag value(s)) is thenassociated with the corresponding media content. This may beaccomplished, for example, by storing this information in a table,database, or other suitable data structure. The tag values may also beembedded into metadata of the corresponding media content (e.g., mediafile) in order to enable a client device receiving the media file toobtain the pertinent metadata.

According to another aspect, tags are embedded into syndication feedsthat may be made available for distribution by an online media store tofacilitate the management of podcasts. These tags include, for example,a block tag (e.g., <block> tag).

According to one embodiment, a block tag may be embedded in asyndication feed to block podcast media content from appearing in anonline media store. Similarly, a block tag may be used to request thatparticular podcast media content no longer be blocked from appearing inthe online media store. More particularly, a block tag may be embeddedin podcast metadata content at the feed and/or episode levels. Uponidentifying the block tag, the corresponding value of the block tag maybe ascertained. If the value of the block tag indicates that thecorresponding media content is to be blocked, the podcast media contentis removed from the online media store and/or blocked. Alternatively, ifthe value of the block tag indicates that the corresponding mediacontent is to be unblocked, the podcast media content may be restored inthe online media store and/or unblocked. Blocking and unblocking may beaccomplished by simply identifying the block status (i.e., block state)in a table or other suitable data structure. Removal of media contentmay be accomplished by deleting the actual media file(s) and/or removingthe corresponding URL at which the media file(s) are to be accessed orretrieved.

According to another aspect, management of podcasts may be facilitatedby other mechanisms that are not tag-based. In accordance with oneembodiment, a user may challenge the ownership of a podcast to block orremove a podcast from an online media store. In accordance with anotherembodiment, images associated with a podcast may be stored to allowefficient retrieval of the episodes of the podcast and theircorresponding images.

In accordance with one embodiment, when a user challenges the ownershipof a podcast, the user is provided a code that is to be embedded at theURL at which the podcast is available. For instance, the user may beinstructed to embed the code in a file located at the URL. Once thepresence of the code and therefore the ownership of the podcast isconfirmed, the podcast (or episode) may be blocked or removed from themedia store as requested by the challenger.

In accordance with another embodiment, images associated with a podcastor episode may be stored or cached to enable the images to beefficiently rendered. Upon access of the podcast or episode, a firstsignature associated with the stored image is compared with a secondsignature calculated based upon the current image. If the signatures areequal, there has been no change to the image. However, if the signaturesare not equal, the image has changed since it was previously stored, andtherefore the stored image is replaced with the current image. Asignature may be a Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) value, hash number orother value calculated based upon the content of the file.

Other aspects and advantages of the invention will become apparent fromthe following detailed description taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings which illustrate, by way of example, theprinciples of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will be readily understood by the following detaileddescription in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein likereference numerals designate like structural elements, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a media system according to one embodimentof the invention.

FIGS. 2A-2C are process flow diagrams illustrating methods of processinga new-feed-URL tag to move the location of an RSS feed in accordancewith one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 3 is an exemplary screen shot illustrating the presentation ofexplicit indicators indicating that a podcast or episode containsexplicit content.

FIGS. 4A-4B are process flow diagrams illustrating methods of processingan explicit tag to identify explicit content in an RSS feed inaccordance with one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 5A is an exemplary screen shot illustrating the presentation of aduration associated with a podcast episode.

FIG. 5B is a process flow diagram illustrating a method of obtaining aduration associated with a podcast episode in accordance with oneembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 6 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method of processing ablock tag to block access to a feed or episode in accordance with oneembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 7 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method of blockingaccess to a feed or episode as shown in FIG. 6.

FIG. 8 is an exemplary table that may be used to identify those feeds orepisodes that have been blocked.

FIG. 9 is an exemplary graphical user interface enabling a user toreport a concern.

FIG. 10 is an exemplary screen shot that may be displayed to confirmreceipt of a report submitted by a user.

FIG. 11 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method of processingimages associated with a podcast in accordance with one embodiment ofthe invention.

FIG. 12 is an exemplary graphical user interface that may be presentedto enable a user to browse an online media store.

FIG. 13 is an exemplary graphical user interface enabling a user toselect a category of podcasts.

FIG. 14 is an exemplary graphical user interface enabling a user tosearch on the online media store.

FIG. 15 is an exemplary graphical user interface enabling a user tosearch podcasts in the online media store.

FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating exemplary categories that may beembedded in an RSS feed using category tags in accordance with oneembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 17 is exemplary computer-readable code for generating multiplecategories and nested categories in accordance with one embodiment ofthe invention.

FIG. 18A is a process flow diagram illustrating a method of categorizingpodcasts in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 18B is an exemplary graphical user interface that may be used todisplay information associated with a podcast or episode.

FIG. 19 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method of associatingpodcast media content with one or more keywords in accordance with oneembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 20 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method of searchingpodcasts according to keywords in accordance with one embodiment of theinvention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The invention pertains to improved techniques that facilitatemanagement, organization and use of podcasts. The improved techniquescan pertain to creating, publishing, hosting, accessing, subscribing,organizing, managing, transferring, searching, browsing, and/or playingpodcasts.

In accordance with various embodiments of the invention, tags areembedded in syndication feeds (e.g., RSS feeds) that support thesyndication of podcasts that are to be made available for distributionvia a server. For instance, the server may be associated with a websiteenabling podcasts to be distributed via an online media store. In someembodiments, tags are embedded in syndication feeds to facilitatemanagement of the syndication feeds. In other embodiments, tags areembedded in syndication feeds to facilitate the organization, browsingand searching of the syndication feeds. In the following description,the disclosed embodiments are described with reference to RSS feeds.However, it is important to note that these examples are merelyillustrative, and therefore other types of syndication feeds ormechanisms may be implemented.

Embodiments of the invention are discussed below with reference to FIGS.1-20. However, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that thedetailed description given herein with respect to these figures is forexplanatory purposes as the invention extends beyond these limitedembodiments.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a media system 100 according to oneembodiment of the invention. The media system 100 includes a media storeserver 102 that hosts an on-line media store. The media store server 102can off-load commerce transactions and/or delivery of purchased digitalmedia assets to other servers, if desired. As shown in FIG. 1, the mediasystem 100 includes one or more client devices 104 for use by end users.The client devices 104 couple to a data network 106. Additionally, themedia store server 102 also couples to the data network 106. In oneimplementation, the data network 106 can refer to one or more datanetworks, typically, high data-bandwidth networks, namely, wirednetworks, such as the Internet, Ethernet, gigabit Ethernet, and fiberoptic, as well as wireless networks such as IEEE 802.11(a), (b) or (g)(WiFi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMax), and Ultra-Wide Band (UWB).

A computer program 108 (client or client application), typically a mediamanagement application (MMA) or other media player application, runs onthe client device 104. One example of a media management application isthe iTunes® application, produced by Apple Computer, Inc. of Cupertino,Calif. The client devices 104 are, in general, computing devices. As anexample, the client devices 104 can be specific or general-purposepersonal computers (or even portable media players). The client device104 can couple to a portable media device 109 (portable media player).One example of a portable media player suitable for use with theinvention is the iPod®, also produced by Apple Computer, Inc. Thecomputer program 108 can be used by a consumer for a variety ofpurposes, including, but not limited to, browsing, searching, acquiringand/or purchasing media assets (including podcasts) from the on-linemedia store provided by the media store server 102, creating and sharingmedia asset groups (e.g., playlists), organizing media assets,presenting/playing media assets, transferring media assets betweenclient devices 104, and synchronizing with portable media devices 109.

In addition, the computer program 108 can also be used to facilitate theprocessing and management of podcasts. More particularly, the computerprogram 108 may enable a podcast or metadata (e.g., tags) associatedwith a podcast to be parsed and obtained for use in managing thepodcast. Such metadata may include, for example, a new URL at which thepodcast (or episode) is available, as well as information indicatingwhether the podcast (or episode) contains explicit content or theapproximate duration of the podcast (or episode).

Moreover, the computer program 108 can also be used to facilitate theorganization, browsing, and searching of podcasts. More particularly,the computer program 108 may enable a podcast or metadata (e.g., tags)associated with a podcast to be parsed and obtained for use infacilitating the organization, browsing and searching of the podcast.Such metadata may include, for example, one or more categories in whichthe podcast (or episode(s)) is to be categorized, as well as one or morekeywords to be associated with the podcast (or episode(s)).

Once metadata is obtained, the computer program 108 may store themetadata or otherwise alter the manner in which the podcast is stored orcategorized. For instance, the metadata may be stored in associationwith the podcast in a table or other suitable data structure. Themetadata may also be stored in a header portion of the podcast mediacontent (e.g., episode) of the podcast that is downloaded.

The media system 100 can also include one or more client devices 110 foruse by media programmers. The client devices 110 also run a computerprogram 112, typically a media management application (MMA) or othermedia player application. The computer program 112 can be the same asthe computer program 108, though the computer program 112 might offeradditional functionality for support of the media programmer. As anexample, the media programmer that uses the computer program 112 mightprovide additional functionality for creating and publishing podcasts.

The media system 100 also includes a digital asset manager 114. Thedigital asset manager 114 is coupled to a media assets database 116. Themedia assets database 116 stores media asset information includingmetadata relating to digital media assets available for purchase at theon-line media store. The metadata can pertain to individual media assets(digital media assets) or media asset groups (digital media assetgroups). Media assets can include, but are not limited to, music, video,text, and/or graphics files. One particular type of media asset or mediaasset group is a podcast, which often includes audio, graphics and text(but could also include video). In the case of music, a media assetgroup can be a playlist for the music. One specific example of a type ofdigital media asset group is referred to as an iMix™, which is apublished playlist currently available for browsing and/or purchase onApple Computer's iTunes® Music Store. Another specific example of a typeof digital media asset group is referred to as an iEssential™, which isa published playlist created by a media programmer and currentlyavailable for browsing and/or purchase on Apple Computer's iTunes® MusicStore. Still another specific example of a type of digital media assetgroup is referred to as a Celebrity Playlist, which is a publishedplaylist created by a celebrity and which could be made available forbrowsing and/or purchase on Apple Computer's iTunes® Music Store.

The digital asset manager 114 is configured to store media assetinformation including metadata relating to digital media assetsavailable for purchase at the on-line media store to the media assetsdatabase 116. In addition, the digital asset manager 114 is also capableof retrieving media asset information from the media assets database116, as well as deleting media asset information from the media assetsdatabase. For example, the metadata may include a new network address(e.g., URL) at which the podcast (or episode) is available. The metadatamay also include information indicating whether the podcast (or episode)contains explicit content or the duration of the podcast (or episode).Other examples of metadata include one or more categories in which thepodcast (or episode) is to be categorized, as well as one or morekeywords to be associated with the podcast (or episode). It may also bedesirable to include other information in the metadata, such asinformation indicating whether a podcast (or episode) is to be blockedfrom being accessed via the media store.

The media store server 102 enables the user of a particular clientdevice 104 to acquire media assets (e.g., podcasts). Subsequently, theclient device 104 can download the media assets from the media storeserver 102, the digital media manager 114, or some other server, via thedata network 106. As will be understood by those familiar with datanetworks, other network configurations are possible. Furthermore, whilethe media store server 102 and the digital asset manager 114 are shownas individual and separate devices, it will be understood by thosefamiliar with the art that other configurations are possible. As oneexample, each device can be implemented such that it is distributed overmultiple server computers. As another example, these various serversand/or managers can be implemented by a single physical server computer.

Once a podcast has been published, the podcast can become available on amedia store (on-line media store). The media store can host or not hostthe podcast. If the media store stores all or most of the podcastcontent, then the podcast can be considered hosted by the media store.On the other hand, if the media store only maintains metadata for thepodcast, then the media store does not host the podcast. When the mediaserver does not host the podcast, a third-party server can host thepodcast and the media store accesses the podcast feed as appropriate toacquire any data it needs. When the media server does host the podcast,the media server may generate the appropriate syndication feed. A clientdevice would access the podcast feed from the hosting server to acquire(i.e., download) podcast data it desires to store locally. Hence, in onecase the media store holds the content of the podcast, and in anotherthe media store does not hold the content of the podcast. In eitherinstance, the media store maintains metadata associated with podcaststhat are available on the media store. Using this metadata, the mediastore may organize and manage the podcasts. In many cases, theorganizing and managing can be automated.

When a client subscribes to a podcast, the client receives podcast mediacontent (e.g., episodes) associated with the podcast. Once the episodesof the podcasts have been stored at the client device, some or all ofthe episodes can be copied to a portable media player that canoperatively connect to the client device. In order to ensure that theepisodes are correctly identified, organized and managed, thecorresponding metadata is maintained at the client device. For instance,the metadata may be maintained in a table or other suitable datastructure. In addition, in order to enable the episodes that are copiedto a portable media player or other location to be properly identified,organized, and managed, the corresponding metadata may also be stored inthe metadata (e.g., header) portion of each corresponding episode file.

In some embodiments, tags are embedded in the metadata of RSS feeds tofacilitate management of the RSS feeds. In one embodiment, the RSS feedsare markup language documents (e.g., files) that contain various tagsand corresponding values or files (e.g., media content files). Thesetags may include, for example, the new-feed-URL tag explicit tag,duration tag, and block tag. Methods of processing these tags will bedescribed in further detail below with reference to FIGS. 2A-8.

Podcast owners occasionally need to move their RSS feed from onelocation to another. When a RSS feed is moved to a new server, the URLto the RSS feed changes. This may be performed by embedding anew-feed-URL tag (e.g., <new-feed-URL>) into the metadata of an RSSfeed. By using this tag, a media server (e.g., media store) willunderstand that there is a new location and update its location (e.g.,network address or URL) in accordance with the new feed URL. Anexemplary feed format for the new-feed-URL tag is as follows:

<itunes:new-feed-url>http://newlocation.com/example.rss</itunes:new-feed-url>

Thus, the new-feed-URL tag may be inserted one or more times in the RSSfeed. Each new-feed-URL tag may be inserted in association with a URLidentifying a new location of the feed or an episode.

FIGS. 2A-2C are process flow diagrams illustrating methods of processinga new-feed-URL tag to re-locate an RSS feed in accordance with oneembodiment of the invention. When a server such as that associated withan online media store receives a podcast, the podcast has associatedtherewith both metadata content and media content. The server parses thepodcast metadata content to identify each new-feed-URL tag, if any, andstores information associated with the podcast for subsequent use by theserver. For example, a new URL associated with each new-feed-URL tag canbe identified and stored.

As shown in FIG. 2A, when a podcast is received by the server at 202,the podcast metadata content is parsed at 204. The server thendetermines whether the podcast metadata content includes a new-feed-URLtag at 206. If the podcast metadata content does not include at leastone new-feed-URL tag, the process ends at 208.

When a new-feed-URL tag is detected, a new URL associated with thenew-feed-URL tag is obtained from the podcast metadata content at 210.The new URL is then substituted for the old URL previously associatedwith the podcast or episode(s) at 212. The podcast media content mayinclude one or more episodes, and therefore it may be desirable to tagthe podcast as a whole or tag each episode of the podcast as belongingto the new URL where the tag is associated with the entire feed.

For those episodes that the server is hosting (and therefore storing),the server may update metadata of each of the episodes (e.g., in aheader) at 214. This may be accomplished, for example, by insertinginformation (e.g., a podcast-URL tag) identifying the new URL into theheader portion of the media content file for the episode. Using thisinformation, the episode can include all metadata pertinent to it,thereby enabling that metadata to be retrieved should the episode becopied to a client device.

A client device receiving an episode that has been modified in thismanner may perform a similar process to identify the new URL and anyassociated tag in the associated metadata. The client device may thenstore the episode (e.g., media file) and the associated metadata (e.g.,new URL) in a database.

The client device may also perform a process similar to the server(e.g., where the content is not hosted by the media store). A podcastmay be downloaded automatically (e.g., periodically upon subscription tothe podcast) or in response to a client request. As shown in FIG. 2B,when a podcast is downloaded at 220, the client device parses thepodcast metadata content at 222. The client device determines whetherthe podcast metadata content includes a new-feed-URL tag at 224. If thepodcast metadata content does not include a new-feed-URL tag, theprocess ends at 226.

If the podcast metadata content does include a new-feed-URL tag, the newURL is obtained at 228. Once the new URL is obtained, the new URL issubstituted for the old URL in the table, database or other datastructure maintained by the client device, and may also be substituted(or inserted) in the metadata (e.g., header) of the correspondingpodcast media content (e.g., episode(s)) at 230. One method ofperforming this substitution will be described in further detail belowwith reference to FIG. 2C.

The client may or may not have subscribed to a particular podcast, eventhough an episode of the podcast has been stored. For example, theclient may have simply downloaded a single episode of the podcast. Asanother example, the client may choose to unsubscribe to a podcast he orshe has previously subscribed to.

As shown in FIG. 2C, in accordance with one embodiment, the clientdevice determines if the user has subscribed to the podcast that hasbeen downloaded at 234. For instance, the client device may determinewhether the user has subscribed to a podcast having the same title asthat associated with the new-feed-URL tag. The client device may alsocheck the URL associated with this subscription and compare the URL withthe old URL associated with the new-feed-URL tag.

If the client device determines that the user has subscribed to thepodcast at 236, the episode(s) of the podcast are tagged as belonging tothe new URL in the client table or database maintained by the client at238. In other words, episodes of the old feed are tagged as belonging tothe new feed. If the client device determines that the user has notsubscribed to the podcast at 236, step 238 may be skipped and theprocess continues at 240.

In accordance with one embodiment, when a podcast has been downloaded,the podcast media content is marked to associate the content with thenew URL. As set forth above, this may be accomplished by insertinginformation (e.g., a podcast URL tag) identifying the new URL into aheader of each file for the episode of the podcast that has been storedat 242. Once an episode is “marked” in this manner as belonging to thenew URL, the associated episode file may be copied or moved to anotherclient device while enabling the client device to identify the new URL.

In accordance with one embodiment, when a podcast is downloaded, theuser may choose to subscribe to the podcast. A user may choose todownload a particular episode, for example, by simply dragging anddropping the episode from one client device to another client device.The user may then be presented with the title of the podcast and anoption to subscribe to the podcast. The subscribe option that isdisplayed may be provided in the form of a “subscribe button” or othersuitable format. When the user selects the subscribe option, the user issubscribed to the podcast such that the podcast is associated with thenew URL. More particularly, the identity of the new URL may be obtainedfrom the podcast URL tag. Upon subscribing to the podcast, at least aportion of the podcast media content of the podcast may be downloadedfrom its location at the new URL. More particularly, one or moreepisodes available at the new URL may be downloaded.

Another tag that facilitates the management of podcasts is the explicittag (e.g., <explicit> tag). More particularly, in order to identifyexplicit content in an RSS feed, an explicit tag may be embedded in theRSS feed. An explicit tag may be used to indicate that a podcastincludes explicit content, or that a particular episode of the podcastincludes explicit content. Since an explicit tag can be embedded at thechannel as well as the episode level, an RSS feed may include multipleexplicit tags.

If the user has administrator access to his or her computer, they canuse a parental control preference setting to restrict access to explicitcontent in the online media store. Users will not be able to preview orbuy songs and other items in the media store that have been identifiedas having explicit content when the parental control is set. Additionalinformation on parental control is provided in U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 11/221,351. filed Sep. 5, 2005, and entitled “PARENTAL CONTROLGRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE,” which is hereby incorporated herein byreference.

It may be desirable to determine from the presence of one or moreexplicit tags whether a podcast or episode includes explicit content inorder to provide this information to a potential purchaser. FIG. 3 is ascreen shot illustrating the presentation of explicit indicatorsindicating that a podcast or episode contains explicit content inaccordance with one embodiment. As shown in FIG. 3, it may be desirableto provide a visual indicator indicating whether a podcast or episodeincludes explicit content. Note in FIG. 3 when podcast information isbeing displayed, an “Explicit” indicator can be shown proximate to thosepodcasts or individual episodes thereof that contain explicit content.

It may also be desirable to store information indicating whether thepodcast or episode(s) of the podcast includes explicit content basedupon information obtained from the explicit tag(s) present in an RSSfeed. In accordance with one embodiment, when a podcast having bothpodcast metadata content and podcast media content is received, thepodcast metadata content is parsed to ascertain whether the podcastmedia content includes explicit content. Information associated with thepodcast corresponding to the parsed metadata content (e.g., indicatingwhether the media content includes explicit content) may then be stored.This information may be stored at a client device, as well as a serverassociated with a web site (e.g., online media store). For example, thisinformation may be used to determine whether a particular episode may bepurchased by a user or whether a podcast may be subscribed to by a userin accordance with a filter such as a parental control that limits thecontent of information that may be accessed by or downloaded to a clientdevice.

FIGS. 4A-4B are process flow diagrams illustrating methods of processingan explicit tag to identify explicit content in an RSS feed inaccordance with one embodiment of the invention. When a server receivesa podcast including podcast metadata content and podcast media contentat 402, the server determines whether the podcast metadata contentincludes an explicit tag at 404. If it is determined that the podcastmetadata content does not include any explicit tags, it is assumed to beunknown whether the podcast does not include explicit content. Anindicator indicating that the podcast does not include explicit contentmay be stored at 406 and the process ends at 407.

If it is determined that the podcast does include an explicit tag, thevalue of the explicit tag is determined at 408. As one example, thevalue of the tag can indicate that the content is explicit or clean (ornot specified). As another example, the value of the tag could correlateto a rating scheme of some sort. As set forth above, the explicit tagmay be associated with the podcast or an episode of the podcast.Therefore, in order to associate an indicator of the value of theexplicit tag with the corresponding podcast media content as shown at410, it is determined whether the tag is associated with the podcast ormerely an episode of the podcast at 412. If the tag is associated withan episode of the podcast at 414, an indicator of the value of the tagis associated with the episode of the podcast at 416. However, if thetag is associated with the entire podcast at 414, an indicator of thevalue of the tag is associated with the podcast at 418. The indicatormay be associated with the podcast (e.g., all episodes of the podcast)or an episode of the podcast via a table or other suitable datastructure.

In addition, a visual indicator of the value of the explicit tag may beprovided at 420. For instance, as shown in FIG. 3, the word “explicit”may be provided to indicate explicit content. A customer of the mediastore may see the work “explicit” being displayed proximate to a podcastor an episode thereof when viewing podcasts for purchase.

If the server is hosting the podcast, the server stores the podcastmedia content as well as the podcast metadata content. In accordancewith one embodiment, information corresponding to explicitness of thepodcast media content can be inserted into the header portion of thecorresponding episode file(s) at 422. Therefore, when a client devicethat has downloaded an episode, subsequently copies the episode toanother client device, the new device may ascertain from thisexplicitness information whether the episode(s) include explicitcontent. The process continues for any remaining explicit tags at 424.Once all explicit tags have been processed, the process ends at 426.

A client device receiving an episode that has been modified in thismanner may perform a similar process to identify explicitnessinformation in the episode file. The client device may then store theepisode (e.g., media file) and the associated explicit status (as wellas other metadata) in a database.

A client device may handle explicit tags similarly to the server (e.g.,when the feeds are not hosted by the server). As shown in FIG. 4B, whenthe client receives a podcast at 430, the client determines whether thepodcast metadata content includes an explicit tag at 432. If the podcastmetadata content does not include an explicit tag, it is presumed thatit is not known whether the podcast media content does not includeexplicit content and the podcast media content may be downloaded at 434,regardless of whether a parental control or other filter is implemented.

Once podcast media content (e.g., one or more episodes) has beendownloaded, it may be desirable to later ascertain whether this contentincludes explicit content. For instance, a client device may downloadall podcast media content, regardless of whether it includes explicitcontent. However, the client device may later choose to implement acontent filter to restrict download of explicit content. Therefore, itmay be desirable to store an indication of whether the podcast mediacontent includes explicit content at 436.

Even though the client device may not itself need to discern whether thepodcast media content includes explicit content, the client device mayattempt to copy an episode to another client device that does implementa content filter. Therefore, it may be desirable if the second clientdevice could ascertain whether the podcast media content includesexplicit content. This may be accomplished by inserting information intothe metadata (e.g., header) of the podcast media content (e.g., thecorresponding episode(s) of the podcast) at 438 to indicate whether thecorresponding episode(s) includes explicit content. For instance, thisinsertion process may be performed for all episodes, or only thoseepisodes that include explicit content.

If the podcast metadata content does include an explicit tag at 432, theclient determines the value of the explicit tag at 440. For instance,the value of the explicit tag may indicate that the correspondingcontent is explicit when in a first state and may indicate that thecorresponding content is not explicit when in a second state. Inaccordance with one embodiment, the value may be “clean” or “explicit.”

If the value of the explicit tag indicates that at least a portion ofthe podcast media content does not include explicit content at 442, thecorresponding podcast media content may be stored at 444 (regardless ofwhether a content filter is in use). Steps 436 and 438 may then beperformed to store an indication of the explicitness of the contentexternal to the podcast media content and/or provide such an indicationin the metadata of the corresponding podcast media content (e.g.,episode(s)).

However, if the value of the explicit tag indicates that at least aportion of the podcast media content does include explicit content at442, a determination is made as to whether a content filter such as aparental filter is set to filter explicit content. If the content filteris not set to filter explicit content at 446, steps 444, 436 and 438 maybe performed as set forth above.

If the content filter is set to filter explicit content at 446, thecorresponding podcast media content (e.g., a single episode or allepisodes of the podcast) is prevented from being accessed, downloaded,and/or subscribed to at 448. While it is possible to store an indicatorindicating that the podcast media content includes explicit content asindicated at 436, this is unnecessary since the podcast media content isnot downloaded. However, it may be desirable to provide a visualindicator at 450 explaining that the corresponding podcast media contentincludes explicit content and cannot be downloaded. The process ends at452.

In accordance with another embodiment, the client device may ask theserver whether the requested podcast media content includes explicitcontent or request that the podcast media content be downloaded. If thepodcast media content does include explicit content, the server mayprovide this information to the client device without providing thepodcast media content. However, if the podcast media content does notinclude explicit content, the server may provide the podcast mediacontent along with an optional indication that the podcast media contentdoes not include explicit content. In either case, the client device maystore an indication as to whether the podcast media content includesexplicit content.

As set forth above, an explicit tag may be provided at the channellevel, as well as the episode level. Therefore, it is possible that anexplicit tag is present at both the feed and episode levels. Where thevalue of the explicit tag at the feed level contradicts the value of theexplicit tag at the episode level, the value of the tag at either thefeed or episode level controls, depending upon the configuration of thesystem.

Another tag that facilitates the management of podcasts is the durationtag (e.g., <duration> tag). In order to obtain an estimate of theduration of an RSS feed or episode, a duration tag may be embedded inthe RSS feed. Since a duration tag may be used to provide an estimatedduration of a particular episode of a podcast, an RSS feed may includemultiple duration tags.

In accordance with one embodiment, when a podcast having podcastmetadata content and podcast media content is received, the podcastmetadata content can be parsed to ascertain an approximate duration ofat least a portion of the podcast media content. Information associatedwith the podcast corresponding to the parsed podcast metadata content isthen stored such that the approximate duration of the portion of thepodcast media content is associated with the corresponding podcast mediacontent (e.g., episode).

FIG. 5A is an exemplary screen shot illustrating the presentation of aduration associated with a podcast episode. The duration may be anactual duration or an estimated duration. In accordance with oneembodiment, the duration is an estimated duration obtained from aduration tag. For example, episode #30 of the Amateur travel Podcast isdisplayed in FIG. 5A with a time duration of 30:44, meaning 30 minutesand 44 seconds. Given that this episode's media content has not beendownloaded to the client device, the time duration being displayed isthat acquired from the RSS feed, namely, from a duration tag within theRSS feed file that provides an estimated duration. The duration may thenbe replaced with an actual duration once the episode is downloaded.

FIG. 5B is a process flow diagram illustrating a method of obtaining aduration associated with a podcast episode in accordance with oneembodiment of the invention. As shown at 502, podcast metadata contentfor an episode of a podcast is received. For example, the podcastmetadata content for a podcast may be displayed at a client device. Thepodcast metadata content is then parsed at 504 to determine whether thepodcast metadata content includes a duration tag. If the podcastmetadata content includes a duration tag at 506, a visual indicator ofthe value of the duration tag may be provided at 508. For example, thevalue is typically an estimated duration for an episode. The value ofthe duration tag may be stored at 510.

When the portion of the podcast media content is downloaded (e.g., uponrequest by a user) at 512, at least a portion of the podcast mediacontent is stored. On or following download, the actual duration of thecorresponding podcast media content may calculated at 514 via variousknown techniques. The actual duration may then be provided (e.g., via avisual indicator) at 516 as well as stored at 518. For instance, theactual duration may replace the value of the duration tag (i.e.,estimated duration) that is displayed and/or stored. In addition, theactual duration may be embedded in the header portion of thecorresponding episode file. In this manner, the actual duration of anepisode of a podcast can be associated with its electronic file.

The duration processing illustrated in FIG. 5B can be performed on aclient device or a server device. A client device receiving an episodethat has been modified to include one or more duration tags may performa similar process to identify the actual duration and any associated tagin the metadata of the episode. The client device may then store theepisode (e.g., media file) and the associated metadata (e.g., actualduration) in a database.

The approximate and actual durations may be expressed, for example, inhours, minutes, and/or seconds. For instance, the duration tag can beformatted HH:MM:SS, H:MM:SS, MM:SS, or M:SS, where H denotes hours, Mdenotes minutes, and S denotes seconds. In accordance with oneembodiment, if one colon is present, the number to the left of the colonis assumed to be in minutes, and the number to the right of the colon isassumed to be in seconds.

It may be desirable for a variety of reasons to remove or block aparticular feed or episode from appearing in an online media store orportion thereof. In accordance with one embodiment, a block tag (e.g.,<block> tag) may be used to facilitate the management of podcasts byenabling an owner of a feed to block a particular feed or episode. Thismay be accomplished by embedding a block tag in the RSS feed. Since ablock tag may be implemented at the feed and/or episode levels, an RSSfeed may include multiple block tags.

In accordance with one embodiment, an RSS feed or episode may be blockedby removing the RSS feed or episode from the online media store.Removing an RSS feed or episode from the online media store may beaccomplished by removing the corresponding URL from the online mediastore. If the RSS feed is hosted by a server associated with the onlinemedia store, removal of the feed or episode(s) may include deleting theactual episode(s) from the server. Alternatively, the RSS feed orepisode may be blocked by “marking” it as blocked. For instance, theblocked status of RSS feeds may be maintained in a data structure suchas a table or database. An exemplary table that may be used for thispurpose will be described in further detail below with reference to FIG.8.

FIG. 6 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method of processing ablock tag to block access to a feed or episode in accordance with oneembodiment of the invention. As shown at 602, when a podcast havingpodcast metadata content and podcast media content is received, thepodcast metadata content is parsed at 604 to determine whether thepodcast metadata content includes a block tag. If the podcast metadatacontent does not include a block tag 606, the process ends at 608. Thus,the block status of the corresponding podcast media content remainsunchanged. Alternatively, the absence of a block tag may signify thatthe content is not to be blocked by the media store.

If the podcast metadata content does include a block tag at 606, thevalue of the block tag is obtained at 610. In accordance with oneembodiment, the value of the block tag may indicate that thecorresponding podcast media content is to be blocked when the block tagis in a first state (e.g., “Yes”), while the value of the block tag mayindicate that the corresponding podcast media content is to be unblockedwhen the block tag is in a second state (e.g., “No”).

If the value of the block tag is “No” 612, the corresponding podcastmedia content may be restored and/or marked to indicate that the podcastmedia content is not to be blocked as shown at 614. However, it isimportant to note that the restoring of the corresponding podcast mediacontent and/or marking the status of the podcast media content toindicate that the podcast media content is not to be blocked need onlybe performed if the block status has changed. Restoring of the podcastmedia content may include storing at least one URL associated with thepodcast media content. If the server associated with the online mediastore is hosting the podcast media content, restoring the podcast mediacontent may include storing the actual episode(s).

If the value of the block tag is “Yes” 612, the corresponding podcastmedia content is blocked by removing the podcast media content and/ormarking the podcast media content to indicate that the podcast mediacontent is to be blocked as shown at 616. However, it is important tonote that the removing of the corresponding podcast media content and/ormarking the status of the podcast media content to indicate that thepodcast media content is to be blocked need only be performed if theblock status has changed. Podcast media content may be removed from amedia store by removing at least one URL from the online media storeand/or deleting the actual episode(s) (e.g., if the media store serveris hosting the podcast). This process may be repeated for all otherremaining block tags in the podcast metadata content at 604.

One method of blocking access to a podcast or episode is described withreference to FIG. 7. As shown at 702, it is determined whether the blocktag that has been detected is present at the podcast or the episodelevel at 704. If the block tag is present at the podcast (i.e., channelor feed) level at 706, all of the episodes of the podcast are removedand/or marked as being blocked at 708. Alternatively, if the block tagis present at the episode level at 710, the corresponding episode isremoved and/or marked as being blocked at 712. Episode(s) may be removedby deleting the episode(s) (e.g., if the media store server is hostingthe podcast) and/or removed by deleting at least one URL associated withthe episode(s) from the online media store. A similar process may beperformed to “unblock” access to a podcast or episode.

FIG. 8 is an exemplary table that may be used to identify those podcaststhat have been blocked. In this example, a title 802 of a feed orepisode is provided, along with a corresponding URL 804 and a blockstatus 806. The block status 806 indicates whether the feed or episodeis to be blocked by an online media store. In order to block or unblocka particular feed or episode, the block status 806 may simply be changedto “Y” or “N,” respectively. Alternatively, to block a feed or episodean entry including the URL 804 may be deleted.

It is possible that a block tag may be provided at the channel level(feed level) as well as the episode level. Therefore, it is possiblethat a block tag is present at both the feed and episode levels. Wherethe value of the block tag at the feed level contradicts the value ofthe block tag at the episode level, the value of the tag at either thepodcast or episode level governs, depending upon the configuration ofthe system.

Another way that a user may remove or block a feed or episode from themedia store is to contact the media store via email or other userinterface. In accordance with one embodiment, a user may report aconcern regarding a particular podcast or episode.

In accordance with one embodiment, in order to submit a claim ofownership to remove or block a feed, an owner of a podcast may interactwith a client device to find and select the podcast. The user may thenclick on “Report a Concern” control (e.g., hyperlink or button).

FIG. 9 is an exemplary graphical user interface enabling a user toreport a concern. In the report, the user identifies a particularpodcast via its title and/or URL. In addition, the user provides his orher contact information. The contact information may include a name, anemail address, a phone number, and/or other suitable information. Theuser may then set forth his or her concern regarding the podcast orepisode(s) thereof.

A user may set forth a variety of concerns. Such concerns may includethe functionality (or lack thereof) of a particular podcast or episode.Other concerns may include a claim of ownership of a podcast. In thiscase, it may be desirable to permanently or temporarily block or removethe feed. Thus, the user may set forth a desired action (e.g., temporaryor permanent removal or blocking of the feed). In accordance with oneembodiment, the user may select a predetermined concern, such as “Thisis mine and I want it removed from the Media Store,” from a “Choose aReason” menu. The user could also explain why they want the podcastremoved or why the requested action is appropriate.

When an owner of a podcast has a concern regarding another personpublishing a podcast that they own, they can submit a claim of ownershipof the podcast via the report a concern” page. In other words, the ownermay “challenge” the ownership of the podcast. When the challengersubmits a claim of ownership, the system (e.g., online media store)sends a code to the challenger. The code may be generated in a varietyof mechanisms, such as the generation of a random number via a randomnumber generator. The challenger is then to include this code at thelocation (e.g., URL) of the podcast. For instance, the challenger may bedirected to include the code in the podcast metadata content (e.g.,XML), or in a specified, named file available (or to be made available)at the URL of the podcast. The challenger may be given a particularperiod of time to submit this “proof” of ownership.

The system subsequently verifies that the code exists at the requestedlocation. As set forth above, the system may verify that the code existsin the podcast metadata content of the podcast or in the requested fileat the URL of the podcast. When the system verifies that the code doesexist at the requested location, the challenger is associated with thepodcast. In addition, the association between the challenged submitterof the podcast and the podcast is removed. Access to the podcast maythen be permitted or blocked/removed as requested by the challenger. Forinstance, such access or lack thereof may be provided via an onlinemedia store via an associated server.

FIG. 10 is an exemplary screen shot that may be displayed to confirmreceipt of a concern submitted by a user. This screen shot confirms thatthe concern has been submitted successfully. Alternatively, any problemswith the reported concern received may be identified. For instance, ifthe title or URL cannot be matched in the media store database, anappropriate message may be provided. Subsequent communications regardingthe identified concern or problem may be communicated via the user'scontact information.

A user or podcast owner may also find that a feed (i.e., podcast) isunnecessarily included more than once at a media store. In order toprevent the same feed from being included twice, it is possible toimplement duplicate detection. Duplicate detection may be accomplished,for example, by determining whether both entries or potential entries inthe media store include the same network address (e.g., URL). Thus, evenif the titles differ, duplicate podcast store entries may be detected.In accordance with one embodiment, if both the URL and title are thesame, duplicate detection prevents the same feed from being includedmore than once in the media store index.

When errors or problems occur with feeds that have been submitted, thesubmitter and/or verified owner of the podcast may be notified. Suchproblems may include technical problems with a feed. For instance,technical problems may include the identification of duplicate entries.As another example, when a feed is parsed, illegal or unrecognizedcharacters may be encountered. Other problems may includecontent-related issues. Content-related issues may include, for example,ownership or copyright issues. As these problems or errors areidentified, they may be identified and recorded so that an appropriatemessage can be provided to the submitter and/or owner of the podcast.Notification may be accomplished via email or other suitable mechanism.As errors or problems are rectified, such correction may be stored.Alternatively, the record of the problems or errors may be deleted asthey are rectified.

Under certain circumstances, it may be desirable to disqualify a feed.Disqualification may be accomplished, for example, by setting a variableor feed disqualification bit. Disqualification may indicate that thefeed is under review and unavailable via the media store. Moreparticularly, an entry for the feed in the media store may be removed.Notification of disqualification may be sent to the submitter and/orverified owner of the podcast via email or other suitable mechanism. Forinstance, the notification may indicate that the feed is disqualified orunder review as well as identify the nature of the problem. As problemsare corrected, the disqualification status may be updated to indicatethat the feed is again available via the media store. Where technicalproblems require correction, the podcast owner may re-submit the feedonce the problem(s) has been rectified. The corrected feed may then bemade available via the media store (e.g., after completion of a reviewprocess).

Still further, a podcast owner can directly inform a podcast host ordirectory (e.g., media store) that some of the podcast data has changed.For example, a podcast owner can enter the network address (e.g., URL)for the podcast into a dialog window or other means and cause anotification to the podcast host or directory. Upon receiving thenotification, the podcast host or directory can operate to update theirdata files and/or database by access the podcast at the network address.Hence, the podcast data at the host or directory is thus able to bepromptly updated without delay. In one embodiment, to prevent excessiveupdate requests, the podcast host or directory can limit the frequencyof updates to a maximum number of updates per unit of time.

Other mechanisms for managing podcasts include those that enablepodcasts to be transmitted in an efficient manner. In accordance withone embodiment, due to the large number of podcasts that are supported,an online media store typically does not host the podcasts. However, theretrieval and transmitted of images associated with a particular podcastcan consume significant bandwidth.

One manner in which the transmission of images associated with aparticular podcast can be facilitated is through storing (e.g., caching)the images associated with a particular podcast, even when the remainingpodcast media content is not hosted. The images may be periodicallyupdated, enabling the images to remain current and be quicklyretrievable.

FIG. 11 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method of processingimages associated with a podcast in accordance with one embodiment ofthe invention. Assuming that an initial image associated with a podcast(e.g., episode) has been stored, a stored image associated with theepisode is obtained at 1102. A first signature calculated based upon thestored image is obtained at 1104. In order to avoid calculating thefirst signature each time the image is retrieved, the first signaturemay be stored along with the image. Thus, the first signature that hasbeen calculated may be obtained along with the image, or may becalculated upon retrieval of the image.

In addition, a current image associated with the episode of the podcastis obtained at a URL of the podcast at 1106. The current image may beobtained periodically (e.g., daily or hourly) to enable the image datato be updated. A second signature is calculated based upon the currentimage at 1108, enabling the first signature to be compared to the secondsignature at 1110. If the signatures are not equal at 1112, the twoimages are not identical. In such case, the stored image is thenreplaced with the current image at 1114. However, if the signatures areequal at 1112, the image has not changed and therefore the stored imageneed not be replaced with the current image. The signatures that arecalculated may include, for example, Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC)values or hash numbers. The process ends at 1116.

In other embodiments, tags are embedded in the metadata of RSS feeds tofacilitate the organization, browsing and/or searching of the RSS feeds.These tags include, for example, the category tag (e.g., <category> tag)and keyword tag (e.g., <keyword> tag). More particularly, through theuse of one or more category tags, a podcast or episode may becategorized in an online media store according to one or morecategories. Similarly, one or more keywords may be used to enable apodcast or episode to be easily located as a result of browsing andsearching the online media store. Such categorization and searching mayalso be supported on a client device. FIGS. 12-16 illustrate thebrowsing and searching capabilities that may be supported by the use ofthe category and keyword tags.

Browsing or searching of media items available on a server (e.g., mediastore) can be performed much like searching for other types of mediaassets. For additional details on searching or browsing for media assetssee U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/832,984, filed Apr. 26, 2004,and entitled “GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE FOR BROWSING, SEARCHING ANDPRESENTING MEDIA ITEMS”, which is incorporated herein by reference.However, as to browsing, to facilitate efficient browsing of podcasts, agraphical user interface having a hierarchy of lists can be displayedfor a user. In one implementation, a first list of selectable items willbe a list of genres. The user selects the genre denoted “Podcasts”. Oncethe selection is made a second list of selectable items will bedisplayed. The selectable items in the second list are denoted“Categories”. The categories are different categories that podcasts canbe assigned to. Then, in response to a category selection, a third listof selectable items will be displayed. The selectable items in the thirdlist are denoted “Subcategories” and represent available subcategoriesof the selected category, to the extent utilized. After the variousselections have been made, those podcasts that match the selectedcategory and selected subcategory (if used) are displayed in a mediaasset listing area.

An application program window can be displayed at a client device. Theapplication program window can include a first sub-window and a secondsub-window. The first sub-window includes a first region, a secondregion and a third region. The first region can display a list ofavailable genre (genre list). After a user has selected one of the itemswithin the genre list being displayed in the first region (namely, thepodcast item), the second region can be populated with a list of podcastcategories that are associated with the selected genre from the genrelist. The list of podcast categories is provided by a remote server tothe application program that presents the application program window.After the user has selected one of the available categories of thesecond region, the third region can be populated with a list ofsubcategories that are associated with the selected category. Thesubcategories within the third region, if any, are those pertaining tothe selected category. When the list of subcategories has a plurality ofitems, the user would select one of the items. Once the user hasselected one if the subcategories (or categories if no subcategories),the second sub-window can be populated with a list of available podcaststhat are associated with the category and subcategory (if any). The listof available podcasts can display descriptive information for each ofthe podcasts. For example, the list of available podcasts can bepresented in a row and column (e.g., table) format with each rowpertaining to a different podcast, and with the columns pertaining topodcast name, artist/owner, duration, and price. Further, each of therows can include a “Subscribe” button that allows a user to easilysubscribe to the particular one of the podcasts in the list of availablepodcasts being displayed.

FIG. 12 is an exemplary graphical user interface that may be presentedto enable a user to browse an online media store. As shown, the mediastore can be configured so that podcasts can be searched or browsed onthe media store. The search or browse functions can operate similarly tosearching for albums on an on-line music store. However, in the case ofpodcasts, the search or browse operations are with respect to podcaststhat have been published to the media store. Typically, with music,browsing is achieved by a hierarchy of levels including artist, albumand song. The corollary in the case of podcasts is a hierarchy of levelsincluding podcast category, podcast subcategory, and episodes. In thisexample, the podcast categories shown in the 2^(nd) column include “Arts& Entertainment,” “Audio Blogs,” “Business,” “Comedy,” “Education,”“Family,” “Food,” “Health,” “International,” “Movies & Television,”“Music,” and “News.” As shown in FIG. 13, upon selection of the“Business” category of podcasts, within the online media store, thesubcategories “All,” “Careers,” “Finance,” “Investing,” “Management,”and “Marketing” are presented in the 3^(rd) column.

Alternatively, a user can search podcasts. For example, the user mayenter the search term “business” to search the online media store asshown in FIG. 14. Upon selection of “Podcasts” to limit the type ofmedia being searched, the user may view the results of the search thatfall within the “Podcasts” category, as shown in FIG. 15.

FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating exemplary categories that may beembedded in an RSS feed using category tags in accordance with oneembodiment of the invention. In accordance with various embodiments ofthe invention, a podcast or episode may be categorized according to twoor more categories. The categories may include two or more categories(existing at the same level). Moreover, these categories may includenested categories, as shown, to denote one or more subcategories of acategory. For instance, the “Arts & Entertainment” category in thisexample includes the subcategories “Architecture,” “Books,” “Design,”“Entertainment,” “Games,” “Performing Arts,” “Photography,” “Poetry,”and “Science Fiction.” In any case, an owner of a podcast or anotherauthorized person can insert one or more category tags into a RSS feedso as to cause categorization of the podcast or episodes thereof. Hence,at a media store that list such a podcast for purchase, the podcast canbe automatically categorized for browsing, searching, etc. at the mediastore.

FIG. 17 is exemplary computer-readable code for generating multiplecategories and nested categories in accordance with one embodiment ofthe invention. A single category, “Audio Blogs,” is generated at 1702.Similarly, the category, “Movies & Television,” is generated at 1704.Nested categories “Arts & Entertainment” and “Games” are generated at1706, while multiple categories, “Arts & Entertainment” and “Technology”are generated at 1708. More particularly, each category, “Arts &Entertainment” and “Technology,” has a corresponding sub-category,“Games” and “Computers,” respectively. In addition, it is also possibleto manually submit categories and sub-categories in which a podcast orepisode is to be categorized.

The category tags for generating these categories and subcategories maybe referred to as “specialized” category tags, which in this example are“iTunes” category tags. In addition, it is possible that standard RSScategory tags may also be present in an RSS feed. Both types of categorytags may be present in an RSS feed at the feed level and at the episodelevel. In accordance with one embodiment, an online media store mayenable podcasts to be categorized only within those categories supportedby the media store, which may be represented by “specialized” categorytags.

FIG. 18A is a process flow diagram illustrating a method of categorizingpodcasts in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. The processset forth in FIG. 18A may be implemented by a server associated with theonline media store, as well as a client device. Thus, a set ofcategories may be stored on a server associated with the online mediastore and/or at a client device.

As shown in FIG. 18A, when a podcast having podcast metadata content andpodcast media content is received at 1802, the podcast metadata contentis parsed to identify two or more categories at 1804. The podcast mediacontent is then categorized using the identified categories.

In accordance with one embodiment, it is possible to manually submitcategories in which a podcast or episode is to be categorized. In orderto prevent such a podcast or episode from being “re-categorized,” thepodcast media content is categorized only when the podcast media contenthas not already been manually categorized to identify one or morecorresponding categories.

In addition, while it is possible to categorize podcast media content(e.g., the entire feed or an episode) using both standard andspecialized category tags, in accordance with one embodiment, it isdetermined whether the podcast metadata content includes one or morespecialized category tags at 1806. If the podcast metadata content doesnot include one or more specialized category tags, the podcast mediacontent may be categorized according to any standard category that arepresent at 1808. However, if the podcast metadata content does includeone or more specialized category tags, the specialized category tags areidentified at 1809 and the standard category tags are not used tocategorize the corresponding podcast media content.

As shown at 1810, the podcast media content is stored in associationwith at least one of the category or categories that have beenidentified by the specialized or standard category tags. In accordancewith one embodiment, a podcast or episode may be categorized accordingto a limited number of categories and/or subcategories. These categoriesand/or subcategories may be selected in accordance with the order inwhich they are identified in the podcast metadata content. In otherwords, those categories and subcategories that are parsed and identifiedfirst may be those that are selected for categorization. In this manner,one or more of the episodes of the podcast may be categorizeddifferently.

Categorization may be accomplished by storing one or more categories inassociation with the corresponding podcast or episode(s). This may beaccomplished using a relational database or other suitable datastructure.

When an episode is stored at a client device or a server hosting thepodcast, at least one of the identified categories may also provided inthe metadata (e.g., header) of the corresponding podcast media content(e.g., episode) of the podcast at 1812. This may be accomplished, forexample, by embedding one or more category indications in the metadataof an episode. By providing the categories in the metadata of eachcorresponding episode, the episode may be correctly categorized when itis transferred or copied to another client device such as a media device(e.g., a portable media device, such as a media player).

A client device receiving an episode that has been modified in thismanner may perform a similar process to identify the relevant categoryor categories and any associated tags in the associated metadata. Theclient device may then store the episode (e.g., media file) and theassociated metadata (e.g., categories) in a database.

It is important to note that the online media store will not enablepodcast owners to add new categories to the online media store. Thus, inaccordance with one embodiment, the online media store and associatedserver(s) enable a feed or single episode to be categorized according toa standard RSS tag only when it matches one of the pre-existing set ofcategories supported by the media store.

A client device may be implemented similarly to the online media storeand therefore limit categorization to those categories supported by themedia store. Alternatively, it may be desirable to enable a clientdevice to categorize podcasts and episodes according to standard RSStags or other categories that are not supported by the online mediastore. For instance, it may be desirable to enable a client to definenew, personalized categories for use on a client device such as a mediadevice (e.g., portable media player).

FIG. 18B is an exemplary graphical user interface that may be used todisplay information associated with a podcast or episode. As shown inthis example, although multiple categories may be associated with aparticular podcast or episode, only a subset of these categories mayinitially be presented in a user interface such as that shown in FIG.18B. For instance, in this example, only a single category is listed inthe category column for each podcast or episode entry. This may bedesirable, for example, when space is limited in a particular column ofthe graphical user interface. However, in accordance with oneembodiment, a user may click on the category column of a particularentry to view the additional categories that are associated with theparticular podcast or episode.

While categories may be used to facilitate browsing and organization,keywords may also be used to support keyword searching. In order toidentify a keyword, a keyword tag (e.g., <keyword> tag) may be embeddedin the RSS feed. A keyword tag may be used to indicate that a podcast isto be associated with a particular keyword, or that a particular episodeof the podcast is to be associated with the keyword. Since a set of oneor more keyword tags may be associated with the entire podcast or anepisode of the podcast, an RSS feed may include multiple keyword tags.

FIG. 19 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method of associatingpodcast media content with one or more keywords in accordance with oneembodiment of the invention. A podcast having podcast metadata contentand podcast media content is received at 1902. The podcast metadatacontent is then parsed to identify a set of one or more keywords at1904. More particularly, the podcast metadata content is searched forone or more keyword tags and the value (i.e., keyword) of each of thesetags is obtained from the podcast metadata content. At least a portionof the podcast media content associated with the one or more keywordtags is also identified at 1906. Information associated with the podcastcorresponding to the parsed podcast metadata content is then stored(e.g., at a server associated with a web site such as an online mediastore) such that the set of keywords is associated with thecorresponding podcast media content (e.g., feed or episode) at 1908.This association may be accomplished via a table, linked list,relational database, or other suitable data structure.

In addition, for podcasts that are hosted by the media store, a set ofkeywords may be embedded in the header of an electronic file containingthe media content for an episode of the podcast. For instance, this maybe accomplished via one or more keyword tags. This enables a clientdevice receiving the episode to obtain the associated keywords andassociate these keywords with the episode.

A client device receiving an episode that has been modified in thismanner may perform a similar process to identify the keyword(s) and anyassociated tag(s) in the associated metadata. The client device may thenstore the episode (e.g., media file) and the associated metadata (e.g.,keyword(s)) in a database.

The process set forth in FIG. 19 relates to a single set of keywords andcorresponding podcast media content. It is important to note that a setof keywords may be associated with a feed or a single podcast. Where theset of keywords is to be associated with a feed, the set of keywords isassociated with each episode of the feed. In other words, the set ofkeywords may be associated with one or more episodes of the feed. Thus,the podcast media content (e.g., feed or episode) with which the set ofkeywords is to be associated be identified at block 1906.

Even where a set of keywords is defined for a feed, a different set ofkeywords may also be associated with an episode of the feed. In thisinstance, both sets of keywords may be associated with the episode ofthe feed.

FIG. 20 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method of searchingpodcasts according to keywords in accordance with one embodiment of theinvention. As shown at 2002, one or more keywords for use in searching aplurality of podcasts are obtained. These keywords may be obtained, forexample, via input or selection by a user. The podcast metadataassociated with a plurality of podcasts may then be searched for the oneor more keywords at 2004. More particularly, the podcast metadataassociated with the episode(s) of the plurality of podcasts may besearched. Podcast media content (e.g., one or more episodes) having theone or more keywords associated therewith is then identified at 2006. Alist of the identified podcast media content may then be provided at2008. This searching process may be performed by a server associatedwith a web site such as an online media store, as well as a clientdevice storing information associated with a plurality of podcasts orepisodes.

Although the media assets (or media items) of emphasis in several of theabove embodiments were podcasts, which include audio items (e.g., audiofiles or audio tracks), the media assets are not limited to audio items.For example, the media assets can alternatively pertain to videos (e.g.,movies) or images (e.g., photos). More generally, podcasts can also bereferred to as digital multimedia assets.

The various aspects, embodiments, implementations or features of theinvention can be used separately or in any combination.

The invention is preferably implemented by software, but can also beimplemented in hardware or a combination of hardware and software. Theinvention can also be embodied as computer readable code on a computerreadable medium. The computer readable medium is any data storage devicethat can store data which can thereafter be read by a computer system.Examples of the computer readable medium include read-only memory,random-access memory, CD-ROMs, DVDs, magnetic tape, and optical datastorage devices. The computer readable medium can also be distributedover network-coupled computer systems so that the computer readable codeis stored and executed in a distributed fashion.

The many features and advantages of the present invention are apparentfrom the written description and, thus, it is intended by the appendedclaims to cover all such features and advantages of the invention.Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur tothose skilled in the art, the invention should not be limited to theexact construction and operation as illustrated and described. Hence,all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to as fallingwithin the scope of the invention.

1. A method of processing a podcast, comprising: obtaining a podcastfrom a first server, the podcast being received at a second server andhaving podcast metadata content and podcast media content; determining,at the second server supporting an online media store, whether thepodcast metadata content includes a block tag within the podcastmetadata content, the block tag pertaining to a feed and/or an episodefor the podcast; and when it is determined that the podcast metadatacontent includes a block tag, ascertaining the value of the block tag,if the value of the block tag indicates that the corresponding podcastmedia content is to be blocked, the podcast media content is removedfrom the online media store and/or blocked from being accessed via theonline media store, alternatively, if the value of the block tagindicates that the corresponding podcast media content is to beunblocked, the podcast media content may be restored to the online mediastore and/or unblocked from being accessed via the online media store,and wherein the online media store is configured to permit podcasts thathave been made available to the online media store to be searched orbrowsed so that podcasts are able to be identified and then accessed ifnot blocked.
 2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the methodcomprises: determining whether the podcast media content is marked asbeing blocked from being accessed based on the value of the block tag;and blocking access to the podcast media content when it is determinedthat the podcast media content is marked as being blocked from beingaccessed.
 3. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein removing thepodcast media content includes at least one of removing at least one URLassociated with the podcast media content and deleting one or moreepisodes of the podcast.
 4. The method as recited in claim 1, whereinthe podcast media content includes a plurality of episodes, the methodfurther comprising: determining whether the block tag is associated withthe podcast or one of the plurality of episodes of the podcast; whereinwhen the block tag is associated with the podcast, each of the pluralityof episodes of the podcast is at least one of removed and marked asbeing blocked from being accessed; and wherein when the block tag isassociated with one of the plurality of episodes of the podcast, the oneof the plurality of episodes of the podcast is at least one of removedand marked as being blocked from being accessed.
 5. The method asrecited in claim 1, wherein the method comprises: at least one ofremoving a URL associated with the podcast media content, deleting thepodcast media content and marking the podcast media content as beingblocked from being accessed is performed when the value of the block tagis in a block state.
 6. The method as recited in claim 5, wherein themethod comprises: determining whether the podcast media content ismarked as being blocked from being accessed based on the value of theblock tag; and blocking access to the podcast media content when it isdetermined that the podcast media content is marked as being blockedfrom being accessed.
 7. The method as recited in claim 5, the methodfurther comprising: determining whether the value of the block tag haschanged; wherein at least one of removing a URL associated with thepodcast media content, deleting the podcast media content and markingthe podcast media content as being blocked from being accessed isperformed when the value of the block tag is in a block state and thevalue of the block tag has changed.
 8. The method as recited in claim 5,wherein the podcast media content includes a plurality of episodes, themethod further comprising: determining whether the block tag isassociated with the podcast or one of the plurality of episodes of thepodcast; wherein at least one of removing a URL associated with thepodcasts, deleting all of the plurality of episodes of the podcast andmarking all of the plurality of episodes of the podcast as being blockedfrom being accessed is performed when the value of the block tag is in ablock state and the block tag is associated with the podcast; andwherein at least one of removing a URL associated with one of theplurality of podcasts, deleting the one of the plurality of episodes ofthe podcast and marking the one of the plurality of episodes of thepodcast as being blocked from being accessed is performed when the valueof the block tag is in a block state and the block tag is associatedwith the one of the plurality of episodes of the podcast.
 9. The methodas recited in claim 5, the method further comprising: wherein at leastone of restoring the podcast media content and marking the podcast mediacontent as being unblocked from being accessed is performed when thevalue of the block tag is in an unblock state.
 10. The method as recitedin claim 9, the method further comprising: determining whether the valueof the block tag has changed; wherein at least one of restoring thepodcast media content and marking the podcast media content as beingunblocked from being accessed is performed when the value of the blocktag is in an unblock state and the value of the block tag has changed.11. The method as recited in claim 9, wherein the podcast media contentincludes a plurality of episodes, the method further comprising:determining whether the block tag is associated with the podcast or oneof the plurality of episodes of the podcast; wherein at least one ofrestoring all of the plurality of episodes of the podcast and markingall of the plurality of episodes of the podcast as being unblocked frombeing accessed is performed when the value of the block tag is in anunblock state and the block tag is associated with the podcast; andwherein at least one of restoring one of the plurality of episodes ofthe podcast and marking the one of the plurality of episodes of thepodcast as being unblocked from being accessed is performed when thevalue of the block tag is in an unblock state and the block tag isassociated with the one of the plurality of episodes of the podcast. 12.The method as recited in claim 9, wherein restoring the podcast mediacontent includes storing at least one URL associated with the podcastmedia content.
 13. A non-transitory computer readable medium includingat least executable computer program code tangibly stored therein forprocessing a podcast, the computer readable medium, comprising: computerprogram code for obtaining a podcast, the podcast having podcastmetadata content and podcast media content; computer program code fordetermining, at the second server supporting an online media store,whether the podcast metadata content includes a block tag within thepodcast metadata content, the block tag pertaining to a feed and/or anepisode for the podcast; computer program code for ascertaining thevalue of the block tag; computer program code for (i) removing thepodcast media content from the online media store and/or (ii) blockingthe podcast media content from being accessed via an online media store,if the value of the block tag indicates that the corresponding podcastmedia content is to be blocked; and computer program code for (i)restoring the podcast media content to the online media store and/or(ii) unblocking the podcast media content from being accessed via theonline media store, if the value of the block tag indicates that thecorresponding podcast media content is to be unblocked, wherein theonline media store is configured to permit podcasts that have been madeavailable to the online media store to be searched or browsed so thatpodcasts are able to be identified and then accessed if not blocked. 14.The computer readable medium of claim 13, wherein the computer programcode for removing and/or blocking comprises: computer program code fordetermining whether the podcast media content is marked as being blockedfrom being accessed based on the value of the block tag; and computerprogram code for blocking access to the podcast media content when it isdetermined that the podcast media content is marked as being blockedfrom being accessed.
 15. The computer readable medium of claim 13,wherein the computer program code for removing and/or blocking comprisesat least one of computer program code for removing at least one URLassociated with the podcast media content and computer program code fordeleting one or more episodes of the podcast.
 16. The computer readablemedium of claim 13, wherein the podcast media content includes aplurality of episodes, the computer readable medium further comprising:computer program code for determining whether the block tag isassociated with the podcast or one of the plurality of episodes of thepodcast; wherein when the block tag is associated with the podcast, eachof the plurality of episodes of the podcast is at least one of removedand marked as being blocked from being accessed; and wherein when theblock tag is associated with one of the plurality of episodes of thepodcast, the one of the plurality of episodes of the podcast is at leastone of removed and marked as being blocked from being accessed.
 17. Thecomputer readable medium of claim 13, further comprising: at least oneof computer program code for removing a URL associated with the podcastmedia content, computer program code for deleting the podcast mediacontent and computer program code for marking the podcast media contentas being blocked from being accessed is performed when the value of theblock tag is in a block state.
 18. The computer readable medium of claim17, further comprising: computer program code for determining whetherthe podcast media content is marked as being blocked from beingaccessed; and computer program code for blocking access to the podcastmedia content when it is determined that the podcast media content ismarked as being blocked from being accessed.
 19. The computer readablemedium of claim 17, further comprising: computer program code fordetermining whether the value of the block tag has changed; wherein atleast one of computer program code for removing a URL associated withthe podcast media content, computer program code for deleting thepodcast media content and computer program code for marking the podcastmedia content as being blocked from being accessed is performed when thevalue of the block tag is in a block state and the value of the blocktag has changed.
 20. The computer readable medium of claim 17, whereinthe podcast media content includes a plurality of episodes, the computerreadable medium further comprising: computer program code fordetermining whether the block tag is associated with the podcast or oneof the plurality of episodes of the podcast; wherein at least one ofcomputer program code for removing a URL associated with the podcasts,computer program code for deleting all of the plurality of episodes ofthe podcast and computer program code for marking all of the pluralityof episodes of the podcast as being blocked from being accessed isperformed when the value of the block tag is in a block state and theblock tag is associated with the podcast; and wherein at least one ofcomputer program code for removing a URL associated with one of theplurality of podcasts, computer program code for deleting the one of theplurality of episodes of the podcast and computer program code formarking the one of the plurality of episodes of the podcast as beingblocked from being accessed is performed when the value of the block tagis in a block state and the block tag is associated with the one of theplurality of episodes of the podcast.
 21. The computer readable mediumof claim 17, further comprising: wherein at least one of computerprogram code for restoring the podcast media content and computerprogram code for marking the podcast media content as being unblockedfrom being accessed is performed when the value of the block tag is inan unblock state.
 22. The computer readable medium of claim 21, furthercomprising: computer program code for determining whether the value ofthe block tag has changed; wherein at least one of the computer programcode for restoring the podcast media content and computer program codefor marking the podcast media content as being unblocked from beingaccessed is performed when the value of the block tag is in an unblockstate and the value of the block tag has changed.
 23. The computerreadable medium of claim 21, wherein the podcast media content includesa plurality of episodes, the computer readable medium furthercomprising: computer program code for determining whether the block tagis associated with the podcast or one of the plurality of episodes ofthe podcast; wherein at least one of computer program code for restoringall of the plurality of episodes of the podcast and computer programcode for marking all of the plurality of episodes of the podcast asbeing unblocked from being accessed is performed when the value of theblock tag is in an unblock state and the block tag is associated withthe podcast; and wherein at least one of computer program code forrestoring one of the plurality of episodes of the podcast and computerprogram code for marking the one of the plurality of episodes of thepodcast as being unblocked from being accessed is performed when thevalue of the block tag is in an unblock state and the block tag isassociated with the one of the plurality of episodes of the podcast. 24.The computer readable medium of claim 21, wherein the computer programcode for restoring the podcast media content includes computer programcode for storing at least one URL associated with the podcast mediacontent.